Breast-strap slide



E. E. M GREW BREAST STRAP SLIDE Apri? 1 1924. 1,489,085

Filed May 5, 1922 Fig F/pzZ.

34m; 5.1% 6. mm. INVENTOR.

Patented Apr. 1, 1924..

UNI E ATE EARL E. MCGBEVT, OF LINCOLN, NEBRASKA.

BREAST-STRAP SLIDE.

Application filed Maya, 1922. Serial No. 558,665.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EARL E. MCGREW, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lincoln, in the county of Lancaster and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Breast- Strap Slides, of which the following is a' specification.

Breast strap slide have for many years been made of cast metal, the most common forms being gray iron and malleable iron. When cast in gray iron the article is much heavier than desirable, and owing to the extreme brittleness of the material, considerable difficulty is encountered with breakage. The malleable iron castings are lighter in weight and more durable than the gray iron castings, but their cost is greater. The malleable iron castings will however, when subjected to bending strains, develop weak spots which give way under later strains.

The advantages of sheet steel in the manufacture of articles which were formerly cast are well recognized, but owing to the peculiarly complicated shape of the breast strap slide, it has not herefore been possible to shape the sheet metal into the desired form. My invention contemplates the provision of a breast strap slide which is identical in size and shape with the cast slides but which has several advantages over the older forms.

Referring now to the drawings forming part of this application, and in which like numerals refer to like parts in the description,

Figure 1 illustrates the blank from which the breast strap slide is formed, a being the face view and b the end view.

Figure 2 illustrates the article after the first forming operation, a being the face View and b the end view.

Figure 3 illustrates the article after the second forming operation, a being the face view and Z) the end View.

Figure 4: illustrates the same article after the third forming operation, a being the face view and b the end view.

Figure 5 shows the finished article.

In making the breast strap slide, I first out or punch the blank shown in Figure 1 out of sheet metal. While I do not desire to restrict myself to any particular metal, I prefer to use rolled steel because the special properties of this metal adapt it to the peculiar demands of the breast strap slide. As shown in Figure 1 the blank is elongated the outer ends.

and has straight, parallel edges throughout the greater portion of its length. The two end portions of the blank are wider than the intermediate portion and the end edges of the blank are arcuate. The lateral edges of the enlarged ends of the blank are straight, but they diverge from the longitudinal median line, their inner ends being farther distant from the median line than The inner ends of the lateral edges of the end portions are connected with the extremities of the lateral edge of the intermediate portion along converging straight lines.

I also punch holes in the end portions of the blank, preferably in the same operation which cuts the outline of the blank. The outer edge of each hole is arcuate, and spaced from but concentric with the end edge of the blank. The inner edge of the hole is also arcuate, the curve having however a shorter radius than that of the outer arcuate edge of the hole. The ends of the curved edges of the hole are joined in such a way as to round off all angles to eliminate all sharp corners.

The blank is put through the first forming operation, after which it appears as shown in Figure 2. With respect to the former plane of the blank, there are now three parallel planes. The arcuate end portions 10 are in one plane, the cars 11 are in the intermediate plane, and the main portion 12 is in the third plane, the intermediate plane of the cars 11 being substantially midway between the planes of the portions 10 and 12. The first forming operation also leaves the lateral edges 13 of the main portion of the blank and the extremities 1 1 of the arcuate portions 10 in a common plane which is perpendicular to the three parallel planes above mentioned.

In the second forming operation, the ears 11 are upset so as to incline towards the upturned edges 13, and in the third forming operation, which is the closing operation, the ears 11 are tightly pressed against the upturned edges 13 and the extremities 14: of the arcuate portions 10 are pressed into the plane of the unturned edges 13. After the blank has assumed the shape shown in Figure 4%, it is put through a bending operation which leaves it with a rounded bend along its transverse median line, the upturned edges being on the convex side of the curve. The surface is then finished in any suitable manner, preferably with a coating of glossy black paint, when it is ready for the market.

' ticle is absolutely devoid of any rough edges which might tend to cause wear on the strap, and the only protuberances are those produced by the ears on the outside where they are never in contact with the strap. The joints adjacent these protuberances are moreover smooth.

The use of rolled steel in the manufacture of the strap slides results in an article which in all respects is superior to those now on the market. The cost of manufacture is approximately the cost of a similar article cast of gray iron. The rolled steel strap slide will however not be injured if dropped on a hard floor or otherwise roughly treated while the gray iron strap slide would be broken into numerous pieces if subjected to the same rough treatment. Owing to the greater cost of the malleable strap slide, it has not become as popular as the cast strap slide, despite the advantages Which malleable iron has over gray iron. If'stepped upon by a horse or otherwise subjected to strains common to harness elements, the malleable strap slide will be bent and permanently weakened at the bend. The resilience and flexibility of rolled steel however are such that the same strains will have no permanent effect on the strap slide.

The durability of my strap slide is due not only to the superior qualities of the material used in its manufacture, but is due also to special features in the construction. In the normal use of the strap slide, the greatest strain from the strap is at the points where the looped portions join the main portion, and it is just at these points where the ears 11 fold over to reinforce the strap slide. It should also be noted that this reinforcement is applied in a. manner which leaves no rough edges to wear or to bind the strap. As before pointed out, my strap slide is not only stronger and tougher than other slides, but is lighter in weight than any ofthose at present known. This lightness of weight is important both in transportation in marketing, but also when in use. 7

Having thus described the novel features of my strap slide, as well as its advantages, what I believe to be new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States 1s:

1. A breast strap slide comprising a V shaped body portion, the apex of said V- shaped body portion being rounded, flanges projecting outwardly from the lateral edges of said V-shaped body portion, reinforcing flanges integral with said first mentioned flanges at their free edges, said reinforcing flanges having extensions beyond the ends of said V-shaped body portion, said extensions being in alignment with said first mentioned flanges and then curved away from said V-shaped body portion, ant. a connection between the free ends of each pair of extensions, the extremites of the free edges of said first mentioned flanges being substantially midway between said connection and said V-shaped body portion.

2. A breast strap slide including two diverging legs having a rounded connection, upstanding flanges at each of the lateral edges on the convex side of the breast strap slide, a looped portion at each of the free ends of said diverging legs, said looped portions forming with the main portion of the breast strap slide guideways for a strap, said looped portions overlapping the up standing flanges at their extremities, webs connecting the upper edges, of the overlapping portions of the sides of the looped portion and the upstanding flanges, said webs and overlapping portions forming reinforcements at the points of greatest strain in the breast strap slide.

In testimony whereof I afiii: my signature. 

